Controlled device, controller, information control center, initialization-allowing communication system, and communication control system and medium

ABSTRACT

An initialization-allowing communication system is constituted with devices  70  and  80,  a controller  400  for controlling the devices  70  and  80  through communication, and so on. Each device and the controller  400  are provided with communication means  31,  a house code showing a setting place, a subsystem ID showing the ID of a subsystem in a set system, a device ID showing the type of device, and self-address setting-holding means  11  for holding a self-address constituted with a device number showing a device number and the controller  400  is further provided with system structure holding means  301  for holding the information concerned with the system structure to be controlled and a communication-counterpart-address setting-holding means  401  for setting and holding the address of a counterpart to be communication-controlled obtained from the information concerned with the system structure.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a controlled device, controller,information control center, initialization-allowing communicationsystem, and communication control system and medium which can be usedfor a communication system in which one device or more and a controllerfor controlling the device or devices are connected to each other by anycommunication means.

2. Description of the Related Art

Generally, in the case of a system in which one device or more(hereafter, this or these may be merely referred to as a device ordevices) and a controller for controlling the device or devices areconnected to each other by any communication means and controlled byeach other, communication initialization is necessary in order tocommunicate with each other. The communication initialization representssetting the address number of each device in communication or theaddress number of the device of a communication counterpart to eachdevice. Conventionally, the above setting has been manually andindividually performed when starting a system. Operations of aconventional initialization-allowing communication system are describedbelow by referring to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 14 is a block diagram showing a conventionalinitialization-allowing communication system. The structure in FIG. 14is constituted with a device 10 and a controller 50, the device 10 andthe controller 50 are connected by a communication medium 20 throughcommunication means 31, and they can be communicated with each other.Moreover, the device 10 and controller 50 are provided with self-addresssetting-holding means 11 for setting and holding the addresses of theirown and communication-counterpart-address setting-holding means 14 forsetting and holding the address of a counterpart to be communicatedwith. Furthermore, the device 10 is provided with control means 15 andthe controller 50 is provided with a button 12 for controlling thedevice 10 and control content generation means 13 for detecting that thebutton 12 is pressed, generating corresponding control contents, andsending the contents to the communication means 31 in addition to thecontrol means 15.

Operations of the conventional initialization-allowing communicationsystem having the above structure are described below.

For the device 10 and controller 50 to communicate with each other, itis necessary to set self-addresses of their own and the address of acommunication counterpart. Therefore, in order to set the self-addressesof the device 10 and controller 50, a user first sets the self-addressesby using the self-address setting-holding means 11. For the addresses,an address range or the like is previously specified by communicationrules. For example, it is necessary that each unit has the sole addressdetermined in a system so that the sole address is an optional numberbetween numbers 1 and 7 and there is no duplicate number. The user setsthe self-address of the device 10 to number 1 by using the self-addresssetting-holding means 11 of the device 10 and the self-address of thecontroller 50 to number 7 by using the self-address setting-holdingmeans 11 of the controller 50 in accordance with the above rules. Theself-address of each unit is determined through the above operations.Then, the user sets the address of a counterpart with which each unitcommunicates. In this case, because the device 10 communicates with thecontroller 50 and the controller 50 communicates with the device 10, theuser sets the communication-counterpart address of the device 10 tonumber 7 by using communication-counterpart-address setting-holdingmeans 14 of the device 10 and the communication-counterpart address ofthe controller 50 to number 1 by using thecommunication-counterpart-address setting-holding means 14 of thecontroller 50. The communication-counterpart address of each unit isdetermined through the above operations and thereafter, communicationcan be made. That is, when the user presses, for example, the button 12indicating power-on” of the controller 50, the control contentgeneration means 13 of the controller 50 detects that the button 12 ispressed, generates corresponding control contents, and sends thecontents to the communication means 31. The communication means 31transmits the above control contents from the address number 7 to theaddress number 1 in accordance with the contents in the self-addresssetting-holding means 11 and the communication-counterpart-addresssetting-holding means 14. The transmitted control contents reach thecontrol means 15 via the communication means 31 of the device 10 throughthe communication medium 20 and the control contents are executed. Thatis, when the power-on” button is pressed, the power supply of the device10 is turned on.

To individually control a plurality of devices 10 by one controller 50,it is necessary to specify a device to be controlled by using a controldevice selection switch 912 provided for the controller 50.

Therefore, to set addresses of air conditioners 1 and 2 as theabove-described initialization, the control device selection switch 912is first set to the position indicating the air conditioner 1, then aseries of setting operations above described is performed to completethe address setting of the air conditioner 1. Similarly to the above,the control device selection switch 912 is set to the positionindicating the air conditioner 2 and then, a series of settingoperations described above is performed to complete address setting ofthe air conditioner 2.

As described above, the conventional initialization-allowingcommunication system realizes mutual communication by manuallyperforming communication initialization.

Then, a conventional communication control system constituted with adevice and a controller for controlling the device is described.

That is, in the case of the conventional communication control system,the contents for the controller to control the device are previously setin the controller. Operations of the conventional communication controlsystem are described below by referring to FIG. 15.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram showing a conventional communication controlsystem. The structure in FIG. 15 is constituted with a device 10 and acontroller 50, in which the device 10 and the controller 50 areconnected to each other by a communication medium 20 throughcommunication means 31 of the device 10 and that of the controller 50 sothat they can communicate with each other. Moreover, the device 10 isprovided with communication means 15 and the controller 50 is providedwith a button 12 for controlling the device 10, key input detectionmeans 811 for detecting that the button 12 is pressed, and controlcontent generation means 13 for generating the control contentscorresponding to the key input detection means 811 and sending thecontents to the communication means 31.

Operations of the conventional communication control system having thestructure are described below.

When a user presses, for example, the button 12 of the controller 50indicating power-on,” the key input detection means 811 of thecontroller 50 detects that the button 12 is pressed and moreover, thecontrol content generation means 13 generates control contents addressedto the device 10 corresponding to the control content generation means13 and sends the contents to the communication means 31. Thecommunication means 31 reaches the control means 15 via thecommunication means 31 of the device 10 through the communication medium20 to execute the control contents. That is, when the power-on” buttonis pressed, the power supply of the device 10 is turned on.

As described above, in the case of the conventional communicationcontrol system, control contents corresponding to the case in which abutton is pressed is previously set to control content generation meansin a controller and thereby, a device can be controlled.

In the case of a conventional initialization-allowing communicationsystem, however, it is necessary to manually perform the above settingas initialization before starting communication. Because the abovesetting operation requires the knowledge of address setting, theoperation can be performed only by a person skilled to a certain extent.Therefore, a person in charge of setting work is necessary to set thistype of system and therefore, this type of system is not preferable fromthe viewpoint of cost and man-hour. Moreover, because it is normallydifficult for a housewife, old person, or child to perform the abovesetting, it is necessary to call a person in charge of work wheneverextending or maintaining a device. Therefore, the system also has anaspect of preventing this type of communication device from spreading tohomes.

In the case of a conventional communication control system, it isimpossible to control the control contents which are not set to theabove control content generation means. This has a problem that, whenthere are a device and a controller for controlling the device andthereafter, a new device having functions higher than those of theformer device is purchased, the controller for controlling the formerdevice cannot control the higher functions of the newly purchaseddevice, that is, the controller cannot correspond to the change ofdevices.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is an object of the present invention to provide a controlled device,controller, information control center, and initialization-allowingcommunication system and its medium making it possible to simply performinitialization compared to a conventional case by considering the aboveproblems of a conventional initialization-allowing communication system.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a communicationcontrol system and its medium making it possible for a controller toeasily correspond to the change of devices by considering the aboveproblems of a conventional communication control system.

A first aspect of the present invention is a controlled device to becontrolled by a controller, wherein

an information control center having a data base storing a plurality ofpieces of combined information between said controller and a controlleddevice corresponding to said controller transmits a piece of combinedinformation to a controller included in the piece of combinedinformation in accordance with a transmission request for requesting theinformation control center to transmit any one of said pieces ofcombined information when receiving said request.

A second aspect of the present invention is a controller for controllinga controlled device, wherein

an information control center having a data base storing a plurality ofpieces of combined information between said controller and a controlleddevice corresponding to said controller transmits a piece of combinedinformation to a controller included in the piece of combinedinformation in accordance with a transmission request for requesting theinformation control center to transmit any one of said pieces ofcombined information when receiving said request.

A third aspect of the present invention is an information control centerhaving a data base storing a plurality of pieces of combined informationbetween a controller and a controlled device corresponding to saidcontroller, wherein

said information control center transmits a piece of combinedinformation to a controller included in the piece of combinedinformation in accordance with a request for requesting said informationcontrol center to transmit any one of said pieces of combinedinformation when receiving said request.

A fourth aspect of the present invention is a controlled device to becontrolled by a controller, wherein

an information control center having a data base storing a plurality ofpieces of combined information between said controller and thecontrolled device corresponding to said controller transmits saidcombined information to controllers included in the combined informationat predetermined timing.

A fifth aspect of the present invention is a controller for controllinga controlled device, wherein

an information control center having a data base storing a plurality ofpieces of combined information between said controller and thecontrolled device corresponding to said controller transmits saidcombined information to controllers included in the combined informationat predetermined timing.

A sixth aspect of the present invention is an information control centerhaving a data base storing a plurality of pieces of combined informationbetween a controller and a controlled device corresponding to saidcontroller, wherein

said information control center transmits said combined information tocontrollers included in said combined information at predeterminedtiming.

A seventh aspect of the present invention is an initialization-allowingcommunication system comprising:

a controlled device to be controlled;

a controller for controlling said controlled device; and

an information control center having a data base storing a plurality ofpieces of combined information between said controller and thecontrolled device corresponding to said controller, wherein

said information control center transmits a piece of combinedinformation to a controller included in said piece of combinedinformation in accordance with a request for requesting said informationcontrol center to transmit any one of said pieces of combinedinformation when receiving said request.

An eighth aspect of the present invention is an initialization-allowingcommunication system comprising:

a controlled device to be controlled;

a controller for controlling said controlled device; and

an information control center having a data base storing a plurality ofpieces of combined information between said controller and thecontrolled device corresponding to said controller, wherein

said information control center transmits said combined information tocontrollers included in said combined information at predeterminedtiming.

A further aspect of the present invention is a controlled device to becontrolled by a controller, wherein

said controlled device is provided with first functional-informationholding means for holding the functional information for said controlleddevice, and

requested functional information is transmitted to said controller inaccordance with a transmission request for said held functionalinformation when the request is sent to said controlled device.

A still further of the present invention is a controller for controllinga controlled device, wherein

said controlled device is provided with first functional-informationholding means for holding the functional information for said controlleddevice,

the functional information transmitted from said controlled device isreceived in accordance with a request for transmitting said heldfunctional information when the request is sent to said controlleddevice.

An additional aspect of the present invention is a communication controlsystem comprising a controlled device to be controlled and a controllerfor controlling said controlled device through a communication medium,wherein

said controlled device is provided with first functional-informationholding means for holding the functional information for said controlleddevice, and

requested functional information is transmitted to said controller inaccordance with a request for transmitting said held functionalinformation when the request is sent to said controlled device.

Still another aspect of the present invention is a medium wherein aprogram for making a computer execute functions of all or some of meansof any one of the above-mentioned inventions is recorded.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of the initialization-allowing communicationsystem of the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 2(A) to 2(C) are illustrations showing the self-address format ofthe first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is an image diagram showing the procedure of the first embodimentof the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the first embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 5 is an illustration showing a display example by the display meansof the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of the initialization-allowing communicationsystem of the second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of the initialization-allowing communicationsystem of the third embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 8 is a block diagram of the communication control system of thefourth embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 9(A) and 9(B) are illustrations showing the functional descriptionof the fourth embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 10(A) and 10(B) are communication flowcharts of the fourthembodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 11 is a display diagram of the fourth embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 12 is a block diagram of the communication control system of thefifth embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a block diagram of the fifth embodiment of the presentinvention;

FIG. 14 is a block diagram of a conventional initialization-allowingcommunication system; and

FIG. 15 is a block diagram of a conventional communication controlsystem.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS

10 Device (Controlled device)

11 Self-address setting-holding means

14 Communication-counterpart-address setting-holding means

12 Button

13 Control content generation means

15 Control means

20 Communication medium

31 Communication means

50 Controller

62 Communication-counterpart-address obtaining means

90 External communication medium

101 Functional description holding means

102 Functional description interpretation means

103 Mode switching means

104 Display means

110 Functional description development means

201 External communication function

200 External communication apparatus

202 System structure data base

300 External communication center

301 System structure holding means

400 Controller

401 Communication-counterpart-address obtaining-holding means

811 Key input detection means

901 Enciphering-deciphering means

903 Terminal certification means

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The preferred embodiments of the present invention are described belowby referring to the accompanying drawings.

First Embodiment

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the initialization-allowingcommunication system of the first embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 1, this embodiment is mainly different from theconventional structure described by referring to FIG. 14 in that anexternal communication apparatus and an external communication centerare added to the conventional structure. Therefore, in this embodiment,a component same as that of the conventional example is provided withthe same symbol and its description is omitted. Moreover, a componenthaving no description is assumed to be same as that of the conventionalexample.

As shown in FIG. 1, the initialization-allowing communication system ofthis embodiment makes it possible that a first device 70, a seconddevice 80, a controller 400, and an external communication apparatus 200are connected by a communication medium 20 so that they can communicatewith each other. Moreover, the external communication apparatus 200 isconnected with an external communication center 300 by an externalcommunication medium 90 such as a public telephone line through externalcommunication means 201. The external communication center 300corresponding to an information control center of the present inventionis provided with the external communication means 201 and a systemstructure data base 202 and is able to communicate with the externalcommunication means 201 of a plurality of external communicationapparatuses 200 through the external communication means 201. FIG. 1 isan illustration showing that the external communication center 300connects with one of the certain external communication apparatuses 200.Moreover, the system structure data base 202 stores a plurality ofpieces of combined information between the controller 400 and acontrolled device (e.g. device 70) corresponding to the controller 400.In this case, the above combined information includes the correspondinginformation that a control object of the controller 400 is the device 70and the information for the self-address of the device 70 (that is, thecommunication-counterpart address of the controller 400). These piecesof information are further described later while referring to FIG. 3.

Though internal structures of the devices 70 and 80 and the controller400 are the same as those described for the conventional example in FIG.14, the controller 400 of the first embodiment is provided withcommunication-counterpart-address obtaining-holding means 401 instead ofthe communication-counterpart-address setting-holding means 14 describedfor the conventional example and moreover, provided with systemstructure holding means 301 for holding a structure of the device, inputmeans 411, and display means 412.

The communication-counterpart-address obtaining-holding means 401 ismeans for communicating with the external communication apparatus 200through each communication means 31 provided for the controller 400 andexternal communication apparatus 200 and moreover, obtaining acommunication-counterpart address from the system structure data base202 in the external communication center 300 through the externalcommunication means 201 provided for the external communicationapparatus 200. Moreover, the external communication apparatus 200 isprovided with the system structure holding means 301. In this case, acontrolled device of the present invention corresponds to the devices 70and 80 and moreover, a controller of the present invention correspondsto the controller 400.

Operations of the first embodiment of the initialization-allowingcommunication system of the present invention constituted as describedabove are described below and moreover, operations of a controlleddevice, controller, and information control center of the presentinvention are described below.

A user simultaneously or individually purchases the above devices 70 and80, controller 400, and external communication apparatus 200 from astore (distributor) or the like. In this case, a self-address is set toeach device by the supplier such as a store or manufacturing factory.Moreover, the information corresponding to a controller and a controlleddevice to be controlled by the controller is determined.

In this case, it is assumed that the self-address of the devicepurchased by the user is set by the distributor and moreover, thecombined information including the above corresponding information isentered in the external communication center 300. Therefore, the aboveinformation about devices purchased by each user is sent to the externalcommunication center 300 from each distributor. Moreover, thecorresponding information which device should be determined as thecontrol object of the controller 400 is set by a distributor whileconfirming the intention of a user.

In this case, it is assumed that a self-address is constituted with ahouse code showing the setting place of each device, a subsystem IDshowing the ID of a subsystem in a set system, a device ID showing thetype of a device, and a device number showing the number of a device. Inthis case, the telephone number of the above user or a member's numberprovided for the user by the distributor can be used as a house code.

FIG. 2(A) shows a self-address format. The air conditioner subsystem andthe kitchen subsystem set in a house A are examples of subsystems.

Moreover, FIG. 3 shows the above image. The structure shown in FIG. 3 isthe same as the structure in FIG. 1 above described and componentsprovided with the same symbol has the function described for FIG. 1.

That is, in FIG. 3, an air conditioner subsystem 510 and a kitchensubsystem 520 are connected in addition to the external communicationapparatus 200 and controller 400 as devices connected through thecommunication medium 20. The air conditioner subsystem 510 isconstituted with a first indoor unit 500, a second indoor unit 501, andan outdoor unit 502 and the kitchen subsystem 520 is constituted with arefrigerator 503 and an electronic oven 504. All these devices are setin the house A600. Therefore, the above house code serves as a codeshowing the house A. The self-address of the first indoor unit 500 ofthe air conditioner subsystem 510 is shown in FIG. 2(B) and that of therefrigerator 503 of the kitchen subsystem 520 is shown in FIG. 2(C).

Then, a distributor setting the self-address of each device sends thesepieces of combined information to the external communication center 300.Then, these pieces of combined information are stored in the systemstructure data base 202.

That is, in the case of the example shown in FIG. 3, the contents arestored in the system structure data base 202, that the air conditionersubsystem 510 and kitchen subsystem 520 are connected to the house A inaddition to the external communication apparatus 200 and controller 400,the air conditioner subsystem 510 is constituted with the first indoorunit 500, second indoor unit 501, and outdoor unit 502, and the kitchensubsystem 520 is constituted with the refrigerator 503 and electronicoven 504.”

Then, operations until the user can control the arranged devices 70 and80 by using the newly purchased controller 400 are mainly describedbelow.

In FIG. 1, no information is held by thecommunication-counterpart-address obtaining-holding means 401 or systemstructure holding means 301 of the controller 400 immediately afterpurchasing the controller 400. Therefore, even if the button 12 of thecontroller 400 is pressed and the control content generation means 13detecting that the button 12 is pressed generates such control contentsas power-on,” the structure of a device is not held by the systemstructure holding means 301 or a communication-counterpart address isnot held by the communication-counterpart-address obtaining-holdingmeans 401. Therefore, it is unknown at present to which device thecontrol contents indicating power-on” are issued. Thus, it is impossibleto send communication data to the communication means 31 and control anydevice.

To clarify a device to be controlled by the controller 400, thecommunication-counterpart-address obtaining-holding means 401 mustinquire of the external communication apparatus 200 through thecommunication means 31 and communication medium 20 about a device to becontrolled.

The opportunity for the inquiry is generated as shown below.

That is, when monitoring means for monitoring the change of currentvalues of a power supply line is provided for the power supply line anda new device is set, the change of slight current values of the deviceis detected and the detection result is sent to the controller 400. Thecontroller 400 receives the detection result, decides that a new deviceis set, and commands the communication-counterpart-addressobtaining-holding means 401 to execute the above inquiry. In addition tothe above method, it is also possible that the controller 400 regularlyperforms the above inquiry or the user gives the designation for startof an inquiry to the controller 400.

When necessary information is held by the system structure holding means301 of the external communication apparatus 200, the externalcommunication apparatus 200 provides the necessary information for thecommunication-counterpart-address obtaining-holding means 401. However,at this initial stage, necessary information is not generally held bythe system structure holding means 301 of the external communicationapparatus 200. Therefore, the external communication apparatus 200 isaccessed to the system structure data base 202 through the externalcommunication means 201, external communication medium 90, and externalcommunication function 201 of the external communication center 300.Moreover, the external communication apparatus 200 refers to necessaryinformation and provides information for thecommunication-counterpart-address obtaining-holding means 401 of thecontroller 400 and system structure holding means 301.

The above procedure is described below by referring to the flowchartshown in FIG. 4.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the procedure for the controller 400 tocorrectly perform control when necessary information is provided for thecommunication-counterpart-address obtaining-holding means 401 and systemstructure holding means 301.

That is, as shown in FIG. 4, the communication-counterpart-addressobtaining-holding means 401 of the controller 400 checks if theinformation for a communication-counterpart address is present in thesystem structure holding means 301 of the controller 400 in step 600.

If necessary information is present as the result of the aboveprocessing in step 600, step 605 is started to set thecommunication-counterpart address and a control object can be controlledin step 606. The above processing is more specifically described belowby referring to the structure shown in FIG. 3.

That is, as described above, at the initialization stage, if the factthat a control object of the controller 400 is the first indoor unit 500of the air conditioner subsystem 510 and its self-address is held by thesystem structure holding means 301 of the controller 400 though theseare conditions not normally present, step 600 is completed and step 605is started to set the self-address of the first indoor unit to thecommunication-counterpart-address obtaining-holding means 401 as acommunication-counterpart address in step 605 and control the address instep 606.

In this case, FIG. 4 is described again. Then, unless there is anynecessary information in the system structure holding means 301 in step600, an inquiry is sent to the external communication apparatus 200 instep 601.

When there is necessary information in the system structure holdingmeans 301 of the external communication apparatus 200, the informationis provided for the system structure holding means 301 of the controller400 in step 604.

These processings are more specifically described below by referring tothe structure in FIG. 3. That is, it is assumed that the followinginformation is held by the system structure holding means 301 of theexternal communication apparatus 200 as the structure of a system havinga house code of the house A. That is, it is assumed that the fact thatthe structure is constituted with the air conditioner subsystem 510 andthe kitchen subsystem 520, the air conditioner subsystem 510 isconstituted with the first indoor unit 500, second indoor unit 501, andoutdoor unit 502, the kitchen subsystem 520 is constituted with therefrigerator 503 and electronic oven 504, and moreover the controlobject of the controller 400 is the first indoor unit 500 of the airconditioner subsystem 510 and the self-address of the first indoor unit500 are held as the information for the structure of the system of thehouse A. In this case, the fact that the control object of thecontroller 400 is the first indoor unit 500 of the air conditionersubsystem 510 and information about the self-address of the first indoorunit 500” are provided for the controller 400 as necessary informationout of the system structure information in step 604, and hereaftersimilarly to the above mentioned, the self-address of the first indoorunit 500 is set to the communication-counterpart-addressobtaining-holding means 401 in step 605, and the means 401 is controlledin step 606.

In this case, unless the above-described information is found in thesystem structure holding means 301 of the external communicationapparatus 200 in step 602, necessary information is provided from thesystem structure data base 202 of the external communication center 300in step 603 to perform control in accordance with the procedure same asthe above described. The initialization stage corresponds to the abovecase.

The processing in the above case is more specifically described below byreferring to FIG. 3. That is, system structure information concernedwith not only the house code of the house A but also all house codes isstored in the system structure data base 202 of the externalcommunication center 300 as described above. Therefore, whentransmission of the above corresponding information is requested to theexternal communication center 300 from the controller 400, the externalcommunication apparatus 200 retrieves and extracts only the informationconcerned with the house code of the house A out of the correspondinginformation by using the self-address (already set by a distributor) ofthe controller serving as a request source attached to the transmissionrequest.

Thus, at the initialization stage, it is possible to finally know acommunication-counterpart address by successively following up necessaryinformation even if the communication-counterpart address is not set tothe controller 400 and make the controller 400 obtain and hold a devicewhich is the control object of the controller 400.

The above description shows a case of setting acommunication-counterpart address to the controller 400 without usingthe input means 411 or display means 412. Then, a case of using thesemeans is described below by referring to FIG. 5. FIG. 5 shows a displaystate when selecting a control object.

That is, in this case, though slightly different from theabove-described cases, it is also possible to make the controller 400shown in FIG. 1 display the system structure information on the displaymeans 412 and moreover, select an object to be controlled by thecontroller 400 by using the input means 411.

In FIG. 5, a selection-allowing list is displayed so as to show thatthere are an air-conditioner indoor unit 1 and an air-conditioner indoorunit 2 as devices, which can be controlled by the controller 400.Therefore, the example in FIG. 5 is different from the above example insituation setting. That is, in the case of the above example, whenpurchasing a controller and each device, corresponding informationshowing which device is to be controlled is determined by a distributorand thereafter, the information is used without changing it. In thiscase, however, the air-conditioner indoor units 1 and 2 which can becontrolled by the controller 400 are temporarily determined as the abovecorresponding information and thereafter, a user can select a device tobe actually controlled by the user out of the units.

However, also in FIG. 5, the point that only the air-conditioner indoorunit 1 is made into the control object of the controller 400 is the sameas the above example. Therefore, in FIG. 5, a state is displayed in,which only the air-conditioner indoor unit 1 is selected through theoperation of the input means 411 by a user. In this case, theselection-allowing list represents that it is a list of devices whosepower supplies can be turned on by pressing the button 1 of thecontroller 400 as understood from the indication of button 1 power-on”in FIG. 5. Moreover, by displaying individual specific setting placesuch as a living room or bedroom at the right side of the indication ofthe air-conditioner indoor unit 1 or 2 in the selection-allowing list,discrimination is more easily made. However, it is necessary todetermine the setting-place information by the distributor whenpurchasing each device and set the information as a part of self-addressinformation.

The above processing is specifically performed in the above step 605.

By performing the processing, when purchasing the air-conditioner units1 and 2 from a distributor, the corresponding information showing whichdevice is controlled by the controller 400 is temporarily set. However,it is possible to thereafter change the information.

However, when actually controlling a device after acommunication-counterpart address is set to the controller 400, it isnecessary for a user to input the control device selection informationshowing which device is controlled from now to the controller 400. Thecontrol device selection information can be easily input by setting themode for inputting the control device selection information andthereafter, using the input means 411 and display means 412 describedfor FIGS. 1 and 5. However, as already described, a device to becontrolled by the controller 400 is only the air-conditioner indoor unit1. Therefore, in this case, display contents of the display means 412are different from those in FIG. 5 and thus, only the air-conditionerindoor unit 1 is displayed as an air conditioner. Of course, it isneedless to say that the air-conditioner indoor units 1 and 2 can bedisplayed as devices to be controlled when not only the unit 1 but alsothe unit 2 are entered in the controller 400.

Thus, according to this embodiment 1, it is possible to constitute theself-address of each device with a house code showing a setting place, asystem ID showing the ID of a subsystem in a set system, a device IDshowing the type of a device, and a device number showing a devicenumber, set the self-address when shipping or selling each device, andstore it in the system structure data base of an external communicationcenter. Moreover, it is possible to provide system structure holdingmeans for an external communication apparatus and a controller, set andhold necessary information to and in communication-counterpart-addressobtaining-holding means when the necessary information is present insystem structure holding means in a controller and finally obtain thedata concerned from the system structure data base of the externalcommunication center by successively performing inquiries when thenecessary information is not present in the system structure holdingmeans. Therefore, a user can simply perform communicationinitialization. Furthermore, by using the above structure, it ispossible to provide an initialization-allowing communication systemhaving a simple structure because it is enough for each system structureholding means to hold only the information necessary for each systemstructure holding means.

Furthermore, by making it possible to update the system structure database of the external communication center by accessing the data basefrom the external communication function and change the system structuredata base from a place other than the external communication center, itis possible to update the system structure data base from any placethrough the remote control without updating the system structure database in the external communication center each time.

Furthermore, because combined information of the present inventionincludes corresponding information and self-address information in thecase of the above embodiment, a case is described in which aself-address is provided with a house code for distinguishing betweenhouses of users. However, it is also possible to use an ID uniquelyprovided for each controller to distinguish between a controller and adevice to be controlled by the controller. Moreover, in this case, whenit is possible to distinguish between devices to be controlled inaccordance with specific information for the setting place of eachdevice such as a living room or bedroom, it is possible to realize thecombined information of the present information by using the informationcorresponding between the ID unique to each controller and theabove-mentioned specific-setting-place information. In short, thecombined information of the present invention can use any information aslong as the information shows how a controller and a device to becontrolled by the controller correspond to each other.

Furthermore, a request for transmitting combined information of thepresent invention is described as an inquiry about a device to becontrolled in the case of the above embodiment. As the opportunity forexecuting the transmission request, a case is described in whichmonitoring means is set to a power supply line. Moreover, when a newlyset device communicates that the device is set to a controller, it isalso possible for the controller to transmit the above transmissionrequest by making the communication an occasion. Furthermore, in thiscase, it is possible for the device to directly transmit thetransmission request to the external communication center 300.Furthermore, it is possible for a distributor to directly transmit thetransmission request to the external communication center 300.Furthermore, it is possible for the external communication center 300 totransmit combined information to a controller at a predetermined timingregardless of presence or absence of the transmission request from anexternal unit.

Second Embodiment

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing the initialization-allowingcommunication system of the second embodiment.

This embodiment is constituted by adding enciphering-deciphering meansfor enciphering and deciphering communication contents on the externalcommunication medium of this embodiment into the external communicationapparatus and external communication center of the first embodiment.Therefore, in this embodiment, a component same as that of the firstembodiment is provided with the same symbol and its description isomitted. A component having no description is assumed to be the same asthat of the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is an illustration showing a structure constituted by addingenciphering-deciphering means 901 for enciphering and decipheringcommunication contents on the external communication medium 90 into theexternal communication apparatus 200 and external communication center300 in FIG. 1.

Operations of the second embodiment of an initialization-allowingcommunication system of the present invention thus constituted aredescribed below and simultaneously, operations of a controlled device,controller, and information control center of the present invention aredescribed.

Though the operation for finally knowing a communication counterpart bysuccessively following up necessary information when nocommunication-counterpart address is set to the controller 400 is thesame as the case of the first embodiment, the communication contentsbetween the external communication apparatus 200 and the externalcommunication center 300 are enciphered by the enciphering-decipheringmeans 901. Therefore, even if monitoring the external communicationmedium 90 and looking in communication contents, persons other than theperson who knows how to decipher the communication contents cannotunderstand the communication contents.

Thus, according to the second embodiment, it is possible to defend theprivacy of a user and moreover secure the security because communicationcontents on an external communication medium is concealed.

Third Embodiment

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing the initialization-allowingcommunication system of the third embodiment of the present invention.

This embodiment is constituted by adding terminal certification meansfor certificating a terminal of the present invention to each apparatusand device connected to the communication medium 20 of the secondembodiment. Therefore, in this embodiment, a component same as that ofthe second invention is provided with the same symbol and itsdescription is omitted. Moreover, a component having no description isassumed to be the same as that of the second embodiment.

FIG. 7 is an illustration showing a structure constituted by addingterminal certification means 903 for certificating that the means 903 isa proper communication counterpart when communicating with each otherinto the devices 70 and 80, controller 400 and external communicationapparatus 200 in FIG. 6.

Operations of the third embodiment of an initialization-allowingcommunication system of the present invention thus constituted aredescribed below and simultaneously, operations of a controlled deviceand controller of the present invention are also described.

The state for the controller 400 to control the device concerned inaccordance with the operations described for the embodiments 1 and 2 isthe same as the case of the embodiment 3. However, this embodiment 3 isdifferent from the embodiments 1 and 2 in that communication on thecommunication medium 20 is formed only between terminals in which it iscertificated that the terminal certification means 903 is a propercommunication counterpart. Therefore, by using the terminalcertification means 903, it is possible to prevent a malicious thirdparty from improperly controlling a terminal on the communication medium20 by using an improper terminal not provided with the terminal.certification means 903. For terminal certification, various methods areconsidered including a method in which each terminal certification means903 has a certain code and a new code obtained through a specialoperation between the certain code and a house code coincides with thecertain code.

Thus, according to the embodiment 3, because the communication on acommunication medium is formed only between proper terminals, radio-wavereaching range is large when using radio for a communication medium.Therefore, even when a malicious third party is present at a remoteposition, it is possible to secure the security including the fact thathis improper operation can be prevented.

The same advantage can be obtained by preparing a medium such as amagnetic recording medium or optical disk recording a program for makinga computer execute the functions (processing contents) of some or all ofmeans (or steps) of any one of the above-described embodiments and usingthe medium and thereby executing the operations same as the above.

As described above, the present invention has an advantage thatcommunication initialization can be automatically performed withoutparticipation of a user by system structure holding means in acontroller, and communication-counterpart-address setting-holding meansfor setting and holding the address of a counterpart to becommunication-controlled obtained from the information concerned withthe system structure.

Moreover, by adding an external communication apparatus provided withsystem structure holding means for holding the information concernedwith the system structure of the entire setting place to the abovestructure, the present invention can receive only the informationconcerned with a system structure to be controlled by the systemstructure holding means in the external communication apparatus throughthe communication means when necessary information is not held by thesystem structure holding means in the controller.

Furthermore, by providing a system structure data base for holding theinformation concerned with a system structure related to all of theabove house codes for the above structure and adding an externalcommunication center connected with the external communication apparatusthrough an external communication medium or external communication meanssuch as a public telephone line to the above structure, the presentinvention can receive only the information concerned with a systemstructure to be controlled from the system structure data base in theexternal communication center through the external communication meanswhen necessary information is not held by the system structure holdingmeans in the external communication apparatus. Therefore, the presentinvention has an advantage of making it possible to change objects to becontrolled by a controller even if devices are added or changed.

Furthermore, the present invention has advantages of making it possibleto provide input means and display means for the controller, access thesystem structure holding means of the external communication apparatusand the system structure data base of the external communication centerfrom the controller to make the display means display the data base,select a proper address by using the input means, and select or changethe contents of the addresses of the system structure holding means ofthe controller and the communication-counterpart-address setting-holdingmeans, and realize user customizing according to the taste of a user.

Furthermore, the present invention has advantages for making it possibleto update the system structure data base of the external communicationcenter by accessing the data base in accordance with the externalcommunication function and change the system structure data base from aplace other than the external communication center.

Furthermore, the present invention has an advantage of making itpossible to prevent a third party from stealing a glance at thecommunication contents on the external communication medium by settingenciphering-deciphering means for enciphering the transmission contentson the external communication medium and deciphering encipheredreception contents into the external communication apparatus and theexternal communication center.

Furthermore, the present invention has an advantage of preventing animproper operation on the communication medium by setting terminalcertification means for forming the communication on the communicationmedium only between proper terminals to the terminal on thecommunication medium.

Initialization of a communication-counterpart address in a communicationsystem is described above. Then, embodiments of a communication controlsystem of the present invention are described below by referring to theaccompanying drawings. Hereafter, setting of control function of eachdevice by a controller after the initialization is completed isdescribed.

Fourth Embodiment

FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing the communication control system ofthe fourth embodiment of the present invention.

This embodiment is constituted by adding the external communicationapparatus and external communication center of this embodiment to thestructure of the conventional example described by referring to FIG. 15.Therefore, in this embodiment, a component same as that of theconventional example is provided with the same symbol and itsdescription is omitted. Moreover, a component having no description isassumed to be the same as that of the conventional example.

FIG. 8 is an illustration showing that a device 100 is connected with acontroller 400 by a communication medium 20 so that they can communicatewith each other. Internal structures of each device 100 and thecontroller 400 are as described for the conventional example byreferring to FIG. 15 except for the following.

That is, functional description interpretation means 102 forinterpreting a format statement describing functions of the device 100and setting the contents of the statement to the control contentgeneration means 13, mode switching means 103 for making the functionaldescription interpretation means 102 work, and display means 104 fordisplaying control contents of the button 12 are added to the controller400 of the fourth embodiment.

Moreover, functional description holding means 101 in which the formatstatement describing functions of the device 100 are held is added tothe device 100. In this case, a controlled device of the presentinvention corresponds to the device 100 and a controller of the presentinvention corresponds to the controller 400.

Operations of the fourth embodiment of a communication control system ofthe present invention thus constituted are described below andsimultaneously, operations of a controlled device and a controller ofthe present invention are described.

That is, the functional description holding means 101 of the device 100holds functions of the device 100 and their control contents and methodin the form of a functional description format statement in which thecontrol contents and method are classified into an operation rule forspecifying a header and functional operation, a control attribute forspecifying the attribute of a button for controlling functions, and anoperation condition for functions to operate and described.

FIG. 9(A) shows the form of the format statement. The following are thefunctions power-on” and power-off” among the functions of the device 100described in the form of the format statement. That is, the operationrule for power-on” shows that Functions when the button 1 is pressed.Definition of function is to set the output port 1 to logic ‘1’.” Thecontrol attribute shows that the size of the button 1 is 7 points, thecolor is blue, and the icon is POWER. ICO.” The operation conditionshows that controllable by a body and a remote controller. When powersupply is turned on, report to the controller 400.” The operation rulefor power-off” shows that Functions when the button 2 is pressed.Definition of function is to set the output port 1 to logic ‘0’.” Thecontrol attribute shows that the size of the button 2 is 7 points, thecolor is red, and the icon is POWER2. ICO.” The operation conditionshows that Controllable by a body and a remote controller. When powersupply is turned off, report to the controller 400.” FIG. 9(B) shows theabove states.

In the case of this embodiment, it is assumed that the information forspecifying a communication counterpart such as thecommunication-counterpart address of the device 100 to be controlled bythe controller 400 is already held by the memory of the controller 400in accordance with the method described for the above embodiments. Ofcourse, it is possible for a user or a person in charge of work to setthe information by a conventional method.

Thus, because control contents are not set to the control contentgeneration means 13 yet when setting of a communication-counterpartaddress is completed, the message no setting” is displayed on thedisplay means 104 for displaying control contents by the button 12. FIG.10(A) shows the above state.

Therefore, the user then makes the functional description interpretationmeans 102 function by using the mode switching means 103 of thecontroller 400. The functional description interpretation means 102sends the transmission request for the format statement of functionaldescription previously held by the device 100 to the device 100 throughthe communication means 31 and communication medium 20.

When the functional description holding means 101 of the device 100receives the transmission request through the communication means 31, ittransmits the held format statement of functional description to thecontroller 400 through the communication means 31. The functionaldescription interpretation means 102 of the controller 400 receives theformat statement through the communication medium 20 and communicationmeans 31, interprets the contents, and sets the contents to the controlcontent generation means 13 and also changes the display contents of thedisplay means 104 in accordance with the above contents. FIG. 10(B)shows the display contents after changed.

When the button 12 of the controller 400 is pressed after set asdescribed above, control corresponding to the fact that the button 12 ispressed is executed in accordance with the contents of the controlcontent generation means 13. The above procedure is shown by thecommunication flowchart of the communication medium 20 in FIG. 11.

Therefore, according to the embodiment 4, it is possible to change thecontrol contents of the controller later even if devices are changed bydescribing operations of a device in the form of a functionaldescription format statement classified into a header, operation rulefor specifying functional operation, control attribute for specifyingthe attribute of a button for controlling functions, and operationalcondition for functions to operate and described, holding the formatstatement in the operation description-holding means of a device,transmitting the format statement to the operation descriptioninterpretation means of a controller through a communication medium, andsetting the format statement to control content generation means afterinterpreted.

Moreover, communication media include such media as weak radio, specificsmall-power radio, PHS data communication, millimeter wave radio,infrared radiation in the case of radio communication and such media asoptical fiber, coaxial cable, twisted pair wire, and electric lamp wirein the case of wire communication.

Fifth Embodiment

FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing the communication control system ofthe fifth embodiment of the present invention.

For the fourth embodiment, a case is described in which control contentsby a controller can be upgraded in accordance with upgrade of functionsof a controlled device.

However, this embodiment purposes a controlled device whose controlfunctions can be upgraded by upgrading the software for controlling thehardware of the device without changing hardware structures of thedevice. That is, in the case of this type of controlled device, bypurchasing a controller having new control functions for the controllerside, it is possible to upgrade the functions of the controlled devicein software even if the same controlled device is used.

This embodiment is constituted by adding functional descriptiondevelopment means 110 of the present invention to the device 200 of thefourth embodiment and the functional description holding means 101 tothe controller 500 of the fourth embodiment. Therefore, in thisembodiment, a component same as that of the fourth embodiment isprovided with the same symbol and its description is omitted. Moreover,a component having no description is assumed to be the same as that ofthe fourth embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 12, the device 200 is provided with the functionaldescription development means 110 in addition to the functionaldescription holding means 101. The functional description developmentmeans 110 has functions for developing the functional description formatstatement into control functions and adding the developed functions tothe control means 15.

For example, it is assumed that two types of functional descriptionformat statements such as power-on” and power-off” are held by thefunctional description holding means 101 of the device 200. In thiscase, if a format statement describing a timer function for cuttingpower supply 30 min later” is newly added from the controller-500 sidein accordance with a predetermined designation by a user, the functionaldescription development means 110 develops the format statement into afunction and adds the function to the control means 15. Moreover, asanother example, to set room temperature to 25° C., it is assumed that acontroller before upgraded only controls operations of the compressor ofan air conditioner so that room temperature simply becomes 25° C. as thesoftware for realizing that room temperature is set to 25° C. However,it is assumed that an upgraded controller controls not only theoperations of the compressor but also the air flow in accordance withthe difference between set temperature and room temperature. In thiscase, by transferring the upgraded software for controlling roomtemperature from the controller to the air-conditioner device, it ispossible to add a new function to the control means 15. Thus, only byreplacing the controller with an upgraded controller, it is possible tocontrol room temperature more comfortably though the sameair-conditioner device is used.

To realize the above operation, a condition is necessary that thecontrol means 15 originally has basic capacities for executing addedfunctions and the operation can be realized by combining the basiccapacities or, if a function is described only by software independentlyof hardware structure, the operation is realized by rewriting thesoftware. Because software is generally stored in a storage medium suchas a semiconductor memory or magnetic memory, the above operation can beeasily realized by updating the data in the storage medium.

The above explanation is more specifically described below. That is, inthe case of this embodiment, it is assumed that the following newfunctional description is held by the functional description holdingmeans 101 of the upgraded controller 500. The new functional descriptionmakes it possible to execute a new control function by updating softwarefor the above-described device 200 but it is not held by the functionaldescription holding means 101 of the device 200 at present.

Operations of the fifth embodiment of a communication control system ofthe present invention thus constituted are described below andsimultaneously, operations of a controlled device and a controller ofthe present invention are described.

A user sets the controller 500 to the functional description transfermode by using the mode switching means 103 of the controller 500 andtransfers the functional description of the functional descriptionholding means 101 of the controller 500 to the functional descriptiondevelopment means 110 of the device 200. The functional description istransferred from the functional description holding means 101 of thecontroller 500 to the functional description development means 110through the communication means 31, the communication medium 20, and thecommunication means 31 of the device 200. The functional descriptiondevelopment means 110 develops the functional description into afunction and adds the function to the control means 15.

FIG. 13 shows a specific structure for realizing the fifth embodiment.In the case of the structure shown in FIG. 13, the functionaldescription holding means 101 of the device 200 is held by a nonvolatilememory 703, the control means 15 and functional description developmentmeans 110 are stored in a ROM 701 in the form of software, and a CPU 700executes the means 15 and 110. The storage region and buffer region foractually executed operation results are constituted with a RAM 702.Hardware for actually realizing functions is realized by peripheralhardware 705 connected to an I/O port 704. However, by making thestructure constant independently of devices, it is possible to realize afunction not depending on hardware but depending on only software.

Thus, according to the embodiment 2, functions of a device can beupdated by only the upgrade of version through communication withoutnewly purchasing a device by providing functional description holdingmeans for the controller, transferring the functional descriptionholding means to the functional description development means providedfor a device through communication, developing the functionaldescription holding means into a function, and adding the function tocontrol means as a new function.

As described above, the present invention has an advantage of changingcontrol contents by changing held contents because, for example,functional description holding means for describing and holding thefunction of a device is used.

Moreover, the present invention has an advantage capable of uniformlydescribing and explaining functions because the function of a deviceheld by the functional description holding means is described in theform of a functional description format statement which is classifiedinto a header, an operation rule for specifying a functional operation,a control attribute for specifying the attribute of a button forcontrolling a function, and operational condition for a function tooperate and described.

Furthermore, the present invention has an advantage making it possibleto change control contents by having functional descriptioninterpretation means for interpreting and setting the above functionaldescription.

Furthermore, the present invention has an advantage making it possibleto update functions of a device by providing functional descriptiondevelopment means for the device.

Furthermore, the present invention has an advantage making it possibleto change functions of a device remotely from a controller by providingthe functional description holding means for the controller andtransferring the functional description held by the functionaldescription holding means to the functional description developmentmeans of the device.

As described above, the present invention has an advantage thatinitialization can be simply performed compared to the conventionalinitialization.

Furthermore, the present invention has an advantage that a controllercan easily correspond to the change of devices or a controlled devicecan easily correspond to the change of controllers.

In the above embodiment, a case is described in which self-addressinformation is included in combined information of the presentinvention. However, instead of the self-address information, it ispermitted that, for example, one of pieces of the information showingthe origin and the setting state of a device is included in the combinedinformation. Moreover, among three pieces of the information includingthe self-address information, it is permitted that two optional piecesor all pieces of the information are included. In this case, it isnecessary for the information showing the origin of a device to includethe manufacturer's name of the device, type of the device (e.g. airconditioner, lighting equipment, or television), serial number of thedevice (manufacturing number), model name (product name) of the device,and functions of the device (e.g. in the case of an air conditioner,cooling, heating, and dehumidifying functions). Moreover, it isnecessary for the information showing the setting state of a device toinclude the owner of the device (e.g. elder-brother's personal computeror younger-brother's CD player), setting place of the device (e.g.kitchen, living room, or bedroom), setting area of the device (e.g. thearea of a room in which an air conditioner is set), and nickname of thedevice (e.g. air conditioner No. 1, air conditioner No. 2, or Mr. or Ms.XX′ personal computer). Furthermore, it is necessary for the informationshowing the origin of a device and the information showing the settingstate of a device to include a house code respectively.

Each element in all of the above-described embodiments may beimplemented in software or in dedicated hardware.

Obviously, the operation of each step or means described in any of theabove embodiments can be carried out by preparing and using a recordingmedium on which a program to cause a computer to execute all or part ofeach step or means described in any of the above embodiments isrecorded.

What is claimed is:
 1. An initialization-allowing communication systemcomprising: a controlled device to be controlled; a controller forcontrolling said controlled device; and an information control centerhaving a data base storing a plurality of pieces of combined informationbetween said controller and the controlled device, wherein saidinformation control center transmits a piece of combined information tosaid controller after a transmission request from said controller tosaid information control center to transmit any one of said pieces ofcombined information, said combined information includes information fora system structure of said controller and said controlled device havinga similar setting ID code, a system structure holding means which holdsinformation showing that said combined information is sent to saidcontroller, said combined information is transmitted from one of saidsystem structure holding means and said information control center whensaid transmission request is received, said data base stores said piecesof combined information having setting, ID codes different from eachother, an external communication apparatus having said system structureholding means and an external communication medium for connecting saidexternal communication apparatus with said information control centerare included, and information for the system structure to be controlledby said controller received from said data base in said informationcontrol center through said external communication medium unlessnecessary information is held by said system structure holding means insaid external communication apparatus.
 2. The initialization-allowingcommunication system according to claim 1, wherein the data base of saidinformation control center can be changed in accordance with the accessfrom said external communication apparatus.
 3. Theinitialization-allowing communication system according to claim 1,wherein said information control center and said external communicationapparatus are provided with enciphering-deciphering means forenciphering transmission contents on said external communication mediumand deciphering reception contents.
 4. An initialization-allowingcommunication system comprising: a controlled device to be controlled; acontrolled for controlling controlled device; and an information controlcenter having a data base storing a plurality of pieces of combinedinformation between said controller and the controlled device, whereinsaid information control center transmits a piece of combinedinformation to said controller after a transmission request from saidcontroller to said information control center to transmit any one ofsaid pieces of combined information, said controller is provided withdisplay means for displaying information transmitted to said controllerand input means for designating selection of predetermined informationout of said displayed information, and contents of an addressinformation for the controlled device held by said controller areselected and changed by using said display means and input means.
 5. Amethod of initializing a controller for controlling a device comprisingthe steps of: (a) storing a piece of combined information on the deviceat an information control center, the piece of combined informationincluding information for controlling the device; (b) detecting presenceof the device by the controller; (c) requesting by the controller thepiece of combined information on the device, after detecting thepresence of the device in step (b); (d) transmitting by the informationcontrol center the piece of combined information on the device inresponse to the request by the controller in step (c); (e) displaying bythe controller the information transmitted in step (d) including addressinformation for the device; and (f) changing by the controller theaddress information stored in the device based on the piece of combinedinformation transmitted in step (d) to permit the controller to controlthe device.